(Jan 17): Palm oil extended its decline for a fourth day, as traders remained concerned about weaker demand in January. 

Buyers may be waiting for prices to fall further before snapping up cargoes ahead of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, which begins in March, said Sathia Varqa, an analyst at Fastmarkets Palm Oil Analytics in Singapore.

“Sentiment in the palm market is still fragile with lower demand,” said Paramalingam Supramaniam, a director at Selangor-based broker Pelindung Bestari.

Malaysia’s palm oil exports fell more than 15% during the first half of January compared with the previous month, according to cargo surveyor Intertek Testing Services. AmSpec Agri data showed overseas shipments from the world’s second-largest grower dropped almost 24% in the same period.

January’s weak exports are dragging down the market and palm oil is looking to bottom out, said Abdul Hameed, director of sales at Manzoor Trading Co in Lahore.

Benchmark futures dropped as much as 1.9% to RM4,106 a tonne in Kuala Lumpur, heading to its lowest level since early October. Palm oil has fallen almost 6% so far this week. Soybean oil, palm’s closest substitute, pared losses after dropping 2.7% on Thursday.

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